OUTRAGE (2009)

Written & Directed by Kirby Dick

Where & When: Laemmle Sunset 5, West Hollywood, CA May 11, 2009 5:20PM

This documentary, "Outrage" is coming out at an appropriate time. America is finally being forced to deal with gays and lesbians and their place in this society. People of the LGBTQ communities are no longer accepting to be treated like second class citizens and demand true equality in all aspects in their lives. Marriage, adoption and serving openly in the military are some of the current topics being addressed.

This film deals with several current and former politicians who are gay or at the very least can be identified as "men who have sex with men" but are hiding this fact. They are pretending to be "straight" and at the same time voting against issues that are important to gay and lesbians.

Now in theory, I don't believe in dragging someone out of the closet kicking and screaming. But I also believe that when you are secretly gay in a position of power and the decisions you make can negatively effect the lives of millions of American gays and lesbians... well, I say kick the fucker out of that closet! Expose and shame the disgusting hypocrites so everyone will know who they are.

The film opens with a black screen and the voice of a man being questioned about an incident occurring in a bathroom stall in an airport. That man is, of course, former Senator Larry Craig (R-ID)as he tries to explain what happened in that bathroom and how he was certainly not looking for sex since he is not a homosexual. We then meet a man who claims to have had sex with Senator Craig. Who should we believe?

"Outrage" names several politicians as being closeted gays including Governor Charlie Crist (R-FL), Congressman David Drier (R-CA) and former New York Mayor Ed Koch. We are presented with interviews with people who either know someone or they themselves had a sexual relationship with these politicians. We are presented with other evidence to support the accusations as well as their voting record on gay issues.

There are also interviews with former closeted politicians, Jim McGreevey, Tammy Baldwin and Barney Frank who share their stories on struggling of wanting to have a life in politics but choosing to sacrifice being who they truly are in order for that to happen. They all say that their lives were much more fulfilling once they came out.

I loved Michael Rogers, a gay activist who has made it his one man mission to out every closeted politician who opposes or votes against gay rights. He is shown at work, going out on radio or television to expose these people and the damage they are doing. Check out his blog, "Blogactive".

Although I may be biased, I found "Outrage" really fascinating and informative. I was completely unaware that some of these people were gay and the damage that they have caused. The person in this film who annoyed me the most was Mary Cheney. Although she is not in the closet, she has caused irreparable harm by working with and supporting the policies of her father, Dick Cheney. I don't care if he is her father, she should be ashamed.

I also enjoyed Mr. Dick's previous film "This Film is Not Yet Rated" about the secret group who decides on the rating of each movie. If you haven't seen it, go rent it. Now can it be said with complete certainty that all these politicians are actually gay? No, but I tend to believe the facts presented in "Outrage". It has been shown numerous times that there have been many public figures who have claimed, some quite adamantly, to be "straight" but we come to later learn that has hardly been the truth.